72 hours in NYC cannabis
The first smell to hit me after stepping out of Penn Station on Thursday was, of course, weed.
Twenty minutes later I met up with old friends in Midtown. One is a partner at a law firm, the other a marketing director at a magazine. I summarized for these two women, as best I could, the state’s weed ecosystem, because they asked. The questions poured in and opinions and debates followed for hours. We never even got into 'how ya' been?'
The following day I popped into the?Luxury Meets Cannabis Conferencein Hudson Yards. This boutique event featured white walls, elegant fonts and high-fashioned folks. I listened to Hillary Peckham, the COO of Etain, speak on a panel about the future of retail, as a crowd of a few dozen – many entrepreneurs – watched from the crowd. Vendors sold beauty and wellness products, and traded business cards with each other in the elevator.?
It was a wildly different scene than Saturday, when hundreds of people marched in the rain, wind and cold down Broadway for the city’s annual?Cannabis Parade & Rally, which culminated in Union Square.
The crowd of advocates, lawmakers, artists, vendors and entrepreneurs mingled for hours as the weather worsened. Some umbrellas snapped, a giant inflatable joint went rogue and the worst band I’ve ever heard occupied the stage for a brief while, but otherwise, everyone seemed damn happy. Dozens of speakers kept them engaged. U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer was there. So was Redman.?
I dropped into?the Astor Club?in the early evening and spoke with the founder. The rooms in the underground social club were packed, the clientele wide-ranging and ever revolving, and I probably embarrassed myself on CCTV cameras trying to find the entrance.?
At a small Vietnamese spot across the street a little later, I sat with Jeremy Rivera, a 35-year-old former NY gangster who spent most of the past 18 years in prison on drug-related charges. Now a lead safety instructor for a construction consulting business in NYC, Rivera told me about his plans to apply for a conditional retail license, and his mission –?to create a street-to-employment pipeline that provides opportunities to escape a criminal lifestyle.
We’re publishing a story Thursday on Rivera, but here’s an advance quote.
“Look, I sit in board rooms now with billionaires, and they look at me like an equal. They don't know that I'm fully tattooed, that I'm a 20-year gangbanger, that I was a drug dealer my whole life. They don't know that because I got an opportunity to change. But I fought for it. Now that I opened that door, I'm opening it for everybody.”
That night, I met a friend in Astoria. We stopped into a smoke shop and asked what they had. Without hesitation, a bag emerged from behind the counter and the clerk laid out commercially packaged flower and edibles at a range of prices, most originating from California.
I asked if he had any concerns about the Office of Cannabis Management clamping down. He didn’t understand. His English was fine, he had just never heard of the agency, or about possible repercussions.?
I boarded a train back to Central New York the next morning, after my hotel caught fire, and?reflected on the past 72 hours: The range of people, personalities and purposes that coexist –?at least for the time being – in and around this early cannabis landscape in New York.?
It’s quite a sight.?
Schedule & Panelists finalized for NY Cannabis Insider's Albany conference on May 20
NY Cannabis Insider's conference, presented by?Foley Hoag, is Friday, May 20, from 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. The in-person conference will be held at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Albany.?Purchase tickets here.
For the first time, the conference will also feature?lightning-round business consultations?free for all attendees. Industry veterans will review your business plan, branding, marketing strategies and more, and provide you with expert guidance and next steps.
Our speaker list and panel discussions have been finalized. Here's who and what you can expect:?
Check In:?8:30 a.m. – 9:15 a.m.
9:15-10?Panel #1 - Get Started Now: Crafting a Successful Cannabis Business Plan
Actionable advice from attorneys and accountants about the nuts and bolts of putting together a comprehensive business plan: What to include in your plan, how to structure and budget for it, and ways to leverage resources at your disposal.
Panelists:
10:15 – 11 Panel #2 -?A Deep Dive Into the Regulations for Conditional Adult Use Cannabis Licenses
A blunt discussion about the potential problems with the OCM’s conditional retail regulations as published in draft form: Legal implications, confusing and opaque language, logistics, and more.
Panelists:
11:15 – 12 Panel #3 -?Veterans & Cannabis in the Broader NYS Landscape
Benefits for businesses to hire and work with veterans and veteran-certified companies, loans/education/training benefits veterans have that many don’t, the therapeutic and mental health benefits of cannabis for veterans, and roadblocks and obstacles (mainly at the VA) for vets to access marijuana.
领英推荐
Panelists:
1:15 – 2 Panel #4 -?Impact of Recreational Adult-Use Legislation on Medical Marijuana Providers
A frank and honest discussion about the current issues plaguing NY’s medical program: access, affordability, quality, and more.?
Panelists:
2:15 – 3 Panel #5 - Get Started Now: Developing Brand & Marketing Foundations for Your Cannabis Business
Tips and tricks for putting together your brand identity, what to watch out for from a legal perspective (logos, design), copyrighting, and how to market your cannabis business in the face of severe social media restrictions.
Panelists:
3:15 – 4 Panel #6 - Understanding Legacy Market Transition and Impact
A?focused conversation with?Joshua Alb: Scientist, activist, entrepreneur and founder of Cannademix.?
4-6 Happy Hour and Networking?
The conference will also include a vendor fair, featuring service partners designed to help cannabis entrepreneurs find reliable business partners to build out their business team. Some of our vendors include Cannaspire, Cova, Reagan Companies and Cannabis360. Vendor space is still available.?Please reach out to Lindsay Marlenga ([email protected]) for more information.?
Tickets for the all-day, in-person conference are $225. Tickets include admission, a drink and appetizers during the happy hour and networking session, as well as complimentary headshots provided throughout the day.
Combining weed and athletics a big market (possibly) for NY’s cannabis industry
Reporter?Sean Teehan?surveyed the potential future of "cannathletics" in New York. In a new story, he writes that as legalization pushes marijuana further into the mainstream, a subset of users who combine weed and athletics are "becoming increasingly visible, and the weed industry is responding."?
LIM College launches cannabis degree programs with ‘all-star’ faculty
LIM College – a private, for-profit school that advertises itself as being “where business meets fashion” – is launching bachelor’s and master’s degree programs in “The Business of Cannabis” this fall, and just announced a slate of industry professionals who will be leading the classes.
Freelance reporter?Will Fritz?spoke with LOWD's Jesce Horton and others about their new teaching gigs.
We'll let you know
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NYS AU Licensee, Attorney, and Industry Yenta
2 年MRTA Law, PC couldn't be prouder in representing Jeremy Rivera and his Kush Culture venture to benefit ex-offenders' reentry into society and restarting their lives in the NYC construction industry.
Cannabis Banking | Specialist in new markets & strategies | Official Member - Rolling Stone Cannabis Culture Council | Advisory Board Member - The Cannabis Summit & CTrust
2 年Talk about burying the lede